but its better if you do
by invisibly inked
Summary: "i'm not your babysitter!" the one where artemis is ever the responsible twin and apollo is...apollo. (Part 2 of The 'Not even Greek Gods are Safe from High School AUs' AU)—Artemis, Apollo


**title: but it's better if you do**

 **summary: "i'm not your babysitter!" the one where artemis is ever the responsible twin and apollo is...apollo.** **—Artemis, Apollo.**

 **notes: it took me so long to write this. why. also happy new year.**

 **.**

 **.**

"Artemis, your brother, he's—"

Artemis sighs and rises from the sofa before Daphne can even finish her sentence.

"Where?" she asks, tiredly.

Daphne gives her this look that's a cross between sympathy and pity and Artemis tries to ignore it.

"The pool," Daphne tells her in that gentle voice of hers and Artemis wonders what she's doing here because Daphne is sort of like her in a way and girls like them don't go to crazy wild parties like these (except, Artemis is always at these crazy wild parties so maybe that's not entirely true).

She nods once and maneuvers her way through the crowds of people to get outside the house and find her frustratingly irresponsible twin.

Artemis has been through this scene at least a hundred times and so, therefore, knows exactly what is going to happen next; she will find her brother (sometimes alone and sometimes entangled with a beautiful someone), drunk out of his mind and in some sort of troubling situation that she will have to get him out of and then drag him home in his ridiculously flashy silver porsche because she is DD—she is _always_ DD—while making sure he doesn't die of alcohol poisoning or choke on his vomit or something like that.

Artemis crouches down at the edge of the pool, black maxi skirt brushing the slightly wet ground, and looks at her brother, floating on his back on one of the inflatable rafts. He's fully dressed (this time) but his clothes still look completely soaked and his blond hair is damp and dark. There's a bottle of beer in his hand, the neck of the bottle hanging loosely in his fingers as he hums and laughs at jokes she can't hear.

"Apollo," she calls, like a weary mother.

He lifts his head up, squinting through the dark and when he finally spots her he breaks into an easy grin.

"Artie!" he exclaims, "where've you been?"

Artemis sighs.

 **.**

 **.**

" _Another_ party, Apollo?" Artemis asks, peering over her reading glasses that have slid down her nose at her younger brother, who is on his knees in front of her. He looks up at her, with wide blue eyes and his 'give-me-sympathy' look.

"Please, Artemis?" he begs, hands clasped under his chin. His lower lip wobbles but she does not give in. Instead she looks back to her book ( _Rebecca_ , one of her favorites), in an attempt to signal that she is pretty much done with this conversation.

"That look doesn't work with me anymore," she tells him. He is not going to get his way this time, she thinks resolutely (except, it's Apollo and Apollo _always_ gets his way).

"But Daphne's going to be there!" he says and moves to sit next to her on the sofa. He rests his head on her shoulder. She shrugs him off. He just takes this as an opportunity to let his head rest in her lap. Her stomach twists.

"And she's the love of my life!" he continues on, and she can't help but notice how everything about him is always so animated and brightened and exaggerated (she feels dull in comparison but she'll never voice it to anyone).

Artemis raises an eyebrow and does nothing to prevent the sarcasm that drips from her tone when she says, "Something tells me she doesn't feel the same way."

"C'mon, help me out Artie!" he pleads once more.

"You don't need me there," she tells him without looking his way. She tries to concentrate on the words in front of her, "Not if you don't drink or do anything stupid."

" _Artemis_ ," he says stretching out her name and it's so odd, she thinks, that her resolve is great when it comes to everyone else but with Apollo it's different.

She sighs, and puts her book down. "Fine," she says and he springs up, curly hair bouncing as he cheers, "But Athena's coming with us. I need _someone_ to keep me company when you inevitably ditch me for Dionysus."

His eyes glitter. "Of course!"

 **.**

 **.**

"I's juss that he's, so _annoying_ 'n mean 'n gross! I can't even stand him he makes me so mad Artie, but Heph— you know him— he doesn' deserve _any_ of this!"

Athena is absolutely shitfaced, if her slurred words and swaying are anything to go by. Artemis would find it kind of hilarious if it didn't mean that by the end of the night she'd be dragging _two_ drunk idiots home. She crosses her arms as she leans against the wall and listens intently to her friend though. Athena's face is red, a mix of drunkenness and the indignation that comes whenever she starts talking about Ares, Artemis thinks.

Athena narrows her eyes suddenly. "She's such a bitch," she says and Artemis supposes she's talking about her sister, Aphrodite who has apparently been cheating on Hephaestus with Ares. Athena is quiet for a moment before she says, "I think I hate her."

"You don't mean that," Artemis says and hopes she comes across more sympathetic than pitying as she moves Athena's short dark hair away from her face, tucking some behind her ear.

Athena looks away and shrugs. She downs the rest of her drink in one gulp before all but shoving the empty red cup in Artemis' hands. "I gotta pee," she says and then walks away, off to find a bathroom. Artemis throws away the empty cup and then attempts to follow after when she's stopped by Callisto.

"Apollo's up in a tree," the girl says very matter-of-factly, "I thought you should know, since he's pretty drunk. It looks dangerous, I think he might be stuck."

Artemis pinches the bridge of her nose.

"Sorry," Callisto says apologetically. Artemis waves it off.

"Which way?" she asks, exasperated because it is always _something_.

"Front yard," says Callisto and then, "Do you...need help?"

Artemis smiles but it doesn't reach her eyes. "No, thank you. It's fine."

 **.**

 **.**

It is not fine. Her idiot brother got himself drunk and climbed a tree. The laurel tree he sits in is huge, branching out across half the yard, but not very tall— a fall wouldn't kill him, but it'd definitely hurt. Artemis looks up at her brother with a weariness reserved specially for him and wonders when he will stop making such reckless decisions.

"Apollo," she calls up to him, just loud enough to hear, "Please come down from there." She puts her hands on her hips and waits for him to respond.

He sniffs then announces. "I'm depressed."

"So you climbed a tree?" she says, one eyebrow raised, "You'll hurt yourself up there."

He shakes his head. "That pain will be nothing compared to what I feel now." He places a hand over his heart, a look of distress crossing his features.

Artemis squints up at him in confusion. "What?"

" _Daphne moved away_ ," he moans pathetically. He lets his head rest against the bark of the tree and pats it. Artemis stops herself from rolling her eyes. "I've named this tree after her. It's where we had our first kiss." He closes his eyes in remembrance.

"You mean it's where you chased her, tried to kiss her and then she shoved your face in the dirt?" Artemis clarifies.

Apollo peeks at her with one eye. "Isn't that what I just said?" This time Artemis does roll her eyes.

"Apollo, it's time for us to go. I'm really sorry that Daphne moved away but you cannot stay in that tree so get down right _now_ ," she says sternly, slowly losing patience.

"You can't make me move," he says and hugs the tree tightly. Apollo pouts like a petulant child and suddenly Artemis is just so _sick_ of it, of this pattern they've fallen into, of always cleaning up after his messiness. Her hands ball up into fists at her sides without her realizing.

"You're— You're— You're so childish!" she stutters out angrily, "Why do you have to _act_ like this all the time I mean, I'm not your babysitter!" She stalks closer to the tree, Apollo hangs on tighter. "I'm _always_ the responsible one because you're always so reckless! You drag me out to these parties I never want to go to and then you _ditch_ me _every single time—"_

"Artie I— "

"No! It's— you're so _selfish_ Apollo," she finishes and she's breathing hard. Apollo looks at her with wide blue eyes and an open mouth. She softens but the anger doesn't completely dissipate. He slowly disentangles himself from the tree and carefully makes his way down.

"I'll go home with you now," he says quietly, looking down at his shoes. Artemis sighs (she does that a lot, around him, she realizes) and nods.

"I'll get Athena. Go wait in the car."

 **.**

 **.**

Artemis makes Athena sleep over at their place, carefully placing her on one side of Artemis' own bed. When she falls asleep Artemis goes down to the kitchen picking up two bottles of water before she walks back up to Apollo's room to check on him. He's still awake when she gets there.

"Here," she says placing the water bottles on the nightstand beside his bed, "In case you get thirsty during the night and for the morning. I'll get you some aspirin too. Sleep well." She turns to leave when he suddenly calls for her.

"Artemis, wait." He peeks up at her from under his blanket, he looks small.

"Yeah?" she says walking over towards him. She sits on the edges of his bed and reaches out to touch his hair, affectionate.

"I'm sorry," he tells her genuinely. His eyes look watery, or maybe they're just glassy from all the alcohol. Artemis continues to run her hand through his curls.

"I know," she says and then, "I'm sorry too."

Apollo closes his eyes and hums something low in his throat. "I love you Artie."

She smiles down at him. "I know," she repeats again, "I love you too Apollo."


End file.
